No Mother Tongue Pride Among Batswana

By Monkagedi Gaotlhobogwe
Staff Writer | Monday February 22, 2010 00:00

 

Mbuya, who has penned two Tswana novels told a gathering at the annual National Mother tongue day celebrated in Molepolole that Batswana are not buying Setswana novels and instead prefer to buy western novels and watch foreign television content.

Mbuya, also a member of Molepolole's Kgari Sechele museum, decried that Botswana has been left behind by the likes of Namibia in the promotion of the mother tongue, saying as a result many mother tongues spoken in Botswana are fast disappearing.

He noted that a research by an NGO called Reteng has shown that Bakgalagadi are the country's largest ethnic group, although their language is not an official language.  Sekgalagadi, the language spoken by the Bakgaladi is one of the mother tongue languages in Molepolole which hosted the National mother tongue Day. He said adjacent to Molepolole in Gabane and Mankgodi there is also the Xhosa language, while Seherero is also spoken in Ntswe-le-tau, not far from Molepolole.

Mbuya was concerned that government has not made any initiative to promote the use of mother tongue, and described the situation as regrettable. He observed that other mother tongues have been subdued by Setswana, the national language, and English.

He however paid tribute to Kalanga and Bayei tribes, whom he said are making conceited efforts to conserve and promote their culture, but added that more still has to be done.

'Mother tongue is a people's culture; they compose songs in mother tongue, we hand over oral history from one generation to another in mother tongue, as well as proverbs, and moral teachings'.  Mbuya  said  oral tales, songs, poems, proverbs, have disappeared across  many local ethnic groups who have abandoned their mother tongues.

He encouraged the government to spearhead the use of mother tongue and encourage people to write poetry, novels, tales, in their mother tongue to preserve their culture and languages.

Mbuya  also said government failed the nation when parliament did not adopt the motion by the then Minister responsible for communications, Pelonomi Venson Moitoi to introduce community radio stations. Mbuya was disappointed that when the motion was tabled many MPs feared that community radio stations would breed tribalism.

He said in Namibia they broadcast in many mother tongues, including Sesarwa and Setswana but it has never made them fight.Mbuya said community Radio Stations would enable regions like Molepolole to be able to broadcast in the various mother tongues in their area, such as Xhosa,  Hertero, Sekgalagadi, as well as Setswana.

Mbuya, also a former teacher,  reminded the gathering that the education review of 1987 identified the use of mother tongue as vital for the education of the child, yet up to now government has been reluctant to introduce the policy, always sighting lack of funds.

He pointed out that in many parts of the country where people's mother tongues are not Setswana, they are expected to seek help from government offices in Setswana or English.  Mbuya said civil servants should be required to help the community they are serving in their mother tongue.

In his keynote address the Minister for Youth, sport and culture Shaw Kgathi said civil servants should learn at least two or three mother tongues so that they are able to serve the communities well.